SEATTLE — If there was a tendency for the young Blue Jays to trip over their lips after a gutting loss the night before at Dodger Stadium, there were treats awaiting in the Pacific Northwest to help wash away the pain.

For most of the rookie-heavy squad, they were about to enjoy their first exposure to the annual Canadian baseball love-in/drunk fest weekend in Seattle. Coming late in a season where fan support at home has been dull much of the time, it figured to be a welcome boost.

“For sure, it will definitely be a pick-up,” said Jays first baseman Justin Smoak, a former Mariner but also a keen observer of the northern invasion here the past several seasons. “It’s fun. Even day games, by 11 o’clock some of them have probably had a few. They’re down here to party and have a good time, so it’s something fun for everyone.”

The way things went down on Thursday at Dodger Stadium, the Jays probably could have used some of the good stuff to drown their sorrows. But manager Charlie Montoyo has maintained that the young Jays are good at bouncing back, a notion Smoak confirmed.

And then there’s always the chance that getting walked off in back-to-back games — including the Thursday effort in which the Jays took a one-hitter into the ninth and lost 3-2 — could build character.

“It happens,” Smoak said. “It’s one of those things. You’re going to get walked off. And the fact that they being young guys get to experience that now, it’s probably a good thing so they know how to transition for the next day. So hopefully it’s something that’s kind of a learning experience.

“We showed signs of what we have here. Wags (starter Jacob Waguespack) going out and pitching like he did (Thursday) night is probably not something a lot of people expected against a lineup like that. We have some exciting players here. They’re learning and they all want to get better.”

Whatever the result of the three-game series here this weekend, it’s sure to add to what is a memorable road trip.

The Dodger Stadium experience was an eye-opener, played before close to 150,000 fans over three games in a loud and raucous environment to match any of the good ones in baseball. Match it with what awaited at T-Mobile Park (formerly Safeco Field) and it will arguably be the liveliest six games stretch the Jays will play all season.

As well, there was some added bounce in the steps of many of the Jays when they walked to their lockers and saw the special players weekend uniforms, as jarring as the all-whites might have seemed to some.

Seattle was certainly humming with north of the border frivolity on Friday afternoon. A walk to the stadium revealed patios overflowing with Jays fans enjoying the pre-game action, a party that spilled over into the stadium for batting practice.

It was also going to be a special weekend for Jays catcher Reese McGuire, who grew up 20 minutes away in suburban Kent, Wash.

Making his first appearance in his home town, McGuire was expecting dozens of family and friends including parents, grandparents and uncles.

“Everyone’s just excited,” McGuire said. “It’s right here in our back yard. It’s going to be a dream come true to play in front of them.”

McGuire is also young enough to have a feel for what it’s like to see Canadian fans invade the Seattle stadium. The 24-year-old remembers buying tickets on the street for a Jays game here only to find himself in the middle of a section full of Toronto fans behind the third-base visitor’s dugout.

“I went with some friends from high school and we walked down to our seats and it was a sea of blue,” McGuire said. “We’re like: ‘Are we in the right place?’

“The whole game everyone was super friendly. That’s what I’ll always remember. The Canadian fans were great and when they come down here it’s great for the city. There’s just so much going on downtown.”

BUCHHOLZ IS BACK

The Blue Jays will get some much-needed rotation help this weekend with the return of veteran Clay Buchholz, who has been out since May 9 (or 93 games) with shoulder inflammation.

“It’s good to be back,” said Buchholz, who was signed to give the rotation some stability during spring training before becoming one of many Jays arms to get hurt. “It’s been a while.”

Montoyo confirmed that Buchholz will get Sunday’s start in the finale of this six-game road trip. On Saturday, the team is expected to activate Brock Stewart, who will take over from opener Wilmer Font.

AROUND THE BASES

When Vlad Guerrero clubbed his 15th home run of the season on Thursday, he joined Rowdy Tellez at that number making the Jays the only team this year with two freshman at 15-plus homers.

With a homer and two singles in the series finale against the Dodgers, Vlad Jr. became the first American League rookie to reach 100 hits.

Meanwhile, prior to the game Guerrero was getting into the spirit of things. With a Canadian flag draped over his shoulder, the 20-year-old was signing autographs for fans along the third-base line.

– More on Waguespack’s terrific effort: He became just the sixth pitcher in team history to put together a start of seven innings plus with no runs and one hit in his first 10 career games.